Hunters
by Jazzyfizzle92
Summary: As long as I can remember my uncles Daryl and Merle have been teaching me how to survive. They made me what I am today, a fighter, a survivor, and a hunter.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Greetings viewers! This is my first TWD story so I hope you all like it. Please leave reviews and feel free to tell me any suggestions you have on how I can make the story better. Thank you!**

The woods around me were almost completely silent, just the way I like it. All I could hear was the occasional distant singing of birds and the sound of my own hushed breathing. Any small animal that scampered anywhere near me would be heard instantly. Despite the current ideal hunting conditions I only had four squirrels in my old backpack that once held books for school. Normally after almost a whole day out here, I would have at least double this amount.

I had my wavy brown hair pulled back into a low ponytail and my light hazel eyes darted around the ground carefully. I wore a plain black tank top with baggy gray cargo pants and worn out leather combat boots. I held my hunting rifle in firing position, ready for anything. On both my thighs rested a machete, each in its own leather holster attached to my belt.

I knelt down and brushed my hands over the leaves on the ground, exposing the deer tracks in the dirt. I studied the ground ahead and could just see the path the animal had made from here as it had left behind small hoof prints and broken twigs behind it. I stood with a smile and cupped my hands around my mouth, making a loud bird call by whistling. In the distance I heard the call returned to me. I responded with another whistle and began looking around in the trees for my uncle.

He emerged from the greenery with his crossbow poised and ready to shoot. He had at least a dozen dead squirrels hanging from a rope tied around him. He wore a grungy looking t-shirt with the sleeves torn up, dirty old jeans, and brown work boots. We both lowered our weapons upon seeing each other and he walked over to me as I knelt back down beside the trail I had rediscovered.

"Ya still want that deer?" I asked smiling as Daryl studied the tracks. He smirked at me and gave me a small squeeze on my shoulder.

"Way to go kid," he said, walking ahead focused on the deer trail, "looks like we gonna have venison tonight."

"Oh hell yeah," I replied following closely behind. My mouth was practically watering at the thought of eating that beautiful tender meat. I loved squirrel as much as the next girl but a little variety didn't hurt. What I wouldn't do for a nice jar of barbeque sauce to go with that venison Daryl was talking about.

"Ya catch anything out here today?" Daryl asked, snapping me out of my food fantasies.

"Uh yeah, I got like four squirrels in my bag," I told him.

"Not bad," he muttered in response, "not great but not bad," he turned his head to look at me and I saw the cocky little grin on his face.

"Hey not everyone can be as great a hunter a Daryl Dixon ya know," I replied.

"It's a shame ain't it?" He retorted with a gruff little snicker. I rolled my eyes at him but couldn't help the grin that pulled at the corners of my lips. We continued through the woods in silence, Daryl leading the way. I found it strange how the woods around here were seemingly void of corpses. I hadn't seen the city since the outbreak but from what Glenn had told me the place was completely overrun. How could Atlanta be crawling with them but the surrounding woods be clear?

Daryl abruptly stopped and put up a hand, signaling me to pause and be quiet. He looked at me and pointed at the deer ahead of us. It was quite far from us but who knew if we would get this close to it again. Daryl raised his crossbow and closed one eye, taking aim on the animal. Suddenly, I heard a nearby shuffling sound and two walkers emerged from the greener, moaning loudly with gaping mouths. So much for this area being free of the dead.

"Shit," I spat as a spun on my heels and fired at the two corpses. Each shot was a direct hit, splattering their rotten brains on the trees behind them. The gunshots scared off the deer and Daryl fired twice at the animal as it attempted to flee.

"Come on," Daryl commanding, taking off in a jog after the deer, "I got the son of bitch twice, it's weak."

"I'm sorry," I told him, following closely behind; "I scared it off with the gunshots."

"Ain't ya fault," he responded. I didn't want Daryl to think I wasn't capable of handling myself out here considering that he was wary of bringing me out here with him in the first place.

We made our way to a clearing and found ourselves face to face with other members of the group. Shane, the group's self-proclaimed leader, held a shotgun up at us but quickly lowered it muttering something under his breath. The other men all had weapons ranging from pitchforks to axes. One of looked like a new guy but I wasn't sure if he was just someone I simply hadn't noticed before. The deer we had been tracking laid dead in between the men, its stomach torn open and guts spilling out. There was a walker next to it that someone had beheaded and it didn't take a lot of brain power to realize what had gone done here.

"Son of a bitch," Daryl angrily hissed, stepping over to the ripped apart deer, "That's _my_ deer! Look at it, all gnawed on by this filthy, disease-bearing, motherless, poxy, bastard!" With each furious insult he delivered a kick to the dead walker on the ground. I simply stood back and allowed him to have his little tantrum. I was more disappointed by the loss than angry but I understood my uncle's frustration. We had been trying to catch that stupid thing since sunrise.

"Calm down son," Dale said calmly, "that's not helping."

"What do you know about it, old man?" Daryl asked, stepping up to Dale and getting close to his face. Shane stepped up a bit, ready to step in between the two if he had to. "Why don't you take that stupid hat and go back to On Golden Pond?"

"Come on Daryl," I said, putting my hand on his shoulder, "there's no need for that. It ain't that bad." He looked at me and his face softened a bit but he was still ticked off.

"We've been tracking this deer for miles." he told everyone as he pulled his arrows out of the animal's body. I noticed the new guy staring at me while Daryl spoke and I furrowed my brow as if to silently say _can I help you?_ "We was gonna drag it back to camp, cook us up some venison. What do you think? Do you think we can cut around this chewed up part right here?" He asked motioning with his knife to the gaping hole in the deer. I couldn't help but scrunch my nose up at the idea of eating the animal now.

"I would not risk that." Shane answered with a shake of his head. Daryl looked at me and I shook my head in agreement with Shane.

"That's a damn shame." Daryl said with a sigh, "I got some squirrel, about a dozen or so."

"Four more in here," I added, patting my backpack. "It'll have to do for now."

Suddenly, the eyes and mouth on the disembodied head on the ground sprung open. I looked down at it in disgust and began to pull my machete from its holster.

"Oh god," Amy muttered in horror at the sight of the living head. She was quickly guided away from the scene by Andrea. I hadn't even noticed the sisters there and I wondered how long they had just been standing there watching. I kneeled down beside the head and plunged the blade right through it.

"Come on people, what the hell?" Daryl questioned, "It's gotta be the brain." I pulled my machete from the now completely dead head and wiped the blood off on the grass before putting it back in its holster. "Don't y'all know nothing?" He muttered, walking past everyone towards the camp site.

"You new here?" I asked the man I didn't recognize.

"Yeah," he replied, extending his hand "Rick Grimes."

"Johanna Dixon," I said, accepting his firm handshake, "call me Jo."

"Merle! Get your ugly ass out here!" Daryl shouted from the campsite.

"We gotta tell him, now." Shane said to the others. Before I could ask questions Shane marched past me, the others following him. I had a sinking feeling in my heart as I listened to Daryl calling for Merle with no answer. I walked over with everyone else to hear what Shane had to say.

"Daryl," Shane called to him. Daryl turned to face him with his rope of squirrels hanging in his hand. "Just slow up a bit. I need to talk to you."

"About what?" Daryl asked. I looked around and noticed the way everyone was coming over to hear this. It was like Daryl and Shane was two kids in the schoolyard about to fight and everyone was gathering around to watch.

"About Merle," Shane answered. My breath caught in my throat as my mind immediately jumped to all the worst conclusions. "There was a- there was a problem in Atlanta." Daryl looked at me and paced uncomfortably as everyone watched. I just stood there waiting for him to speak because I had no idea what to say.

"He dead?" Daryl asked quietly. I put my hand over my mouth and took a deep breath, dreading the answer to the question that hung in the air.

"We're not sure," Shane practically whispered.

"How can you not be sure? What the hell happened?" I asked, almost yelling.

"He's either alive or he ain't!" Daryl shouted.

"No easy way to say this, so I'll just say it." Rick suddenly said, stepping up. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. He better explain what happened now or I was gonna lose my shit and Daryl was a second away from putting an arrow in someone's eye.

"Who are you?" Daryl asked him.

"Rick Grimes," He answered.

"Rick Grimes, you got something you want to tell me?" Daryl spat.

"Your brother was a danger to us all." Rick explained calmly, "So I handcuffed him on a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal. He's still there."

"Holy shit," I muttered. I felt nauseous at the thought of Merle being left on a rooftop to die like some animal. If walkers got up there he would have no chance of survival. They would rip him apart and there would be nothing he could do about it. "When did this happen?" I asked.

"Yesterday afternoon, on the supply run," Rick answered.

"Yesterday?" I breathed in shock, "You all left him there handcuffed all goddamn night while you slept like babies in your tents?"

Hold on," Daryl said to Rick, walking away from him, "let me process this. You're saying you handcuffed my brother to a roof and you left him there?" He was screaming now. His body was tense and he looked about ready to pounce on Rick any moment.

"Yeah," was Rick's simple response. I just stared at him in disbelief. I didn't know what to say. I wanted to scream at Rick but I also wanted to just walk away from this and cry alone. More than anything I wanted to go back into Atlanta and get Merle back. Merle might be an asshole but he was my asshole.

Suddenly Daryl threw his rope of squirrels at Rick who quickly ducked to avoid it. Daryl moved forward like he was going to punch Rick square in the face but Shane lunged into him, both men crashing to the ground.

"Hey," T-Dog interjected as Daryl pulled his knife from his belt, "Watch the knife!"

Daryl swung the blade at Rick like a madman. He was in a state of complete rage as he tried to slice the man before him. Rick dodged each swipe easily and then grabbed ahold of Daryl's knife wielding arm. Shane came up behind him and grabbed Daryl in a choke hold as Rick pulled the knife from his hand.

"You'd best let me go!" Daryl shouted furiously.

"Nah, I think it's better if I don't." Shane replied, keeping his tight grip around Daryl's head.

"Let him go Shane!" I yelled. I stepped over to Shane and pulled my rifle back, about to slam the butt of my gun into the back of his skull.

"Hey, calm down," Rick said, grabbing a hold of my gun and pulling it from my hands. Without thinking I reached for my next weapon, my machete. Before I could pull it from its holster Rick wrapped his arm around my torso and pulled me off the ground. Lifting my small frame was embarrassingly easy for him. I thrashed in his grip like a child throwing a tantrum but it was to no avail.

"Put me down asshole," I shouted.

"Will you be calm?" He questioned. I swallowed my pride and nodded in agreement. Rick unceremoniously dropped me and I hit the ground with a thud. "I'd like to have a calm discussion on this topic. Do you think we can manage that?" Rick asked Daryl who didn't respond.

"Do you think we can manage that?" He asked again. Daryl looked at him and gave him the slightest nod and Shane released him from the choke hold. "What I did was not on a whim. Your brother does not work and play well with others." Rick explained.

"It's not Rick's fault." T-Dog said suddenly "I had the key. I dropped it."

"You couldn't pick it up?" Daryl asked.

"Well I dropped it in a drain." He replied, looking a bit ashamed of himself. I scoffed at him and shook my head. I was still sitting in the dirt, my heart pounding in my chest. Daryl stood up and walked over to T-Dog with a disgusted expression.

"If it's supposed to make me feel better it don't." He told him.

"Maybe this will," T-Dog said "look, I chained the door to the roof so the geeks couldn't get at him, with a padlock."

"It's gotta count for something." Rick said, looking at Daryl then me. I just looked down at the ground to avoid eye contact.

"Hell with all y'all!" Daryl cried, "Just tell me where he is. So's I can get him." He sounded more sad than angry now.

"He'll show you." Lori chimed in "Isn't that right?" Everyone looked to Rick now to hear his answer.

"I'm going back." He said finally. Daryl marched past him and completely out of the camp. I thought about following him but sometimes he just needed to be alone with his emotions. This seemed like one of those times.

Rick extended his hand to me to help me get up. I stared at it for a moment before slapping it away. "Get the hell away from me." I spat, getting up on my own and pushed past him.

"I'm sorry for grabbing you before. I was trying to keep everything under control." He explained to me as I walked away. I didn't turn around to face Rick but I rose up my middle finger to him and kept walking until I was out of sight of the camp.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter than the first and I should have the next one up soon. Thank you for the positive review galwidanatitud! I hope you all enjoy this chapter and please review!**

I held the axe with both hands and with such a tight grip that it hurt my knuckles. I swung it at the tree trunk with all my might over and over again. I had been at it for a few minutes but I had barely made a dent in the huge oak. My goal was not to actually take the tree down but it was helping to release some anger. Sweat was pouring off me and my arms ached but I couldn't stop, at least not yet. I could feel some members of the group staring at me but I didn't bother looking at them.

"Jo," Daryl called to me. I ignored him and kept on swinging. He approached me slowly, his crossbow slung over his shoulder. "Jo, would ya just listen to me?"

"I don't want to talk." I replied, continuing to hack away.

"I just need ya to trust me on this." He said, his voice sounding sad and tired. "It's for the best that ya stay here." I stopped swinging the axe and tossed it on to the ground next to me.

"Stop actin' like I can't take care of myself out there!" I exclaimed "I can help! I can help get Merle back but you want me to just sit in this goddamn camp like a child!" I was aware of the scene I was making and how much negative attention I was receiving but I didn't care. My anger was making me behave like a screaming child and I couldn't give any less of a shit.

"I ain't leavin' ya here cause you're a kid!" Daryl insisted, raising his voice to match mine. "I need ya here to defend this place while I'm gone. They need help keepin' this place safe, with so many people goin' back to the city."

"Daryl, I understand what you're sayin' I really do." I said, rubbing my eyes in exhaustion. "But don't you understand that nothing is more important to me right now than keeping Merle alive?"

"Well I also gotta worry about keeping you alive." He said calmly and quietly. "I promise that we'll be back, and if Merle is still chained to that roof when we get there, we'll be back with him. But you gotta stay here Jo, I'm sorry you don't wanna but I think it's for the best."

"If you gotta go, just go." I told him dismissively. I walked away from him and picked the axe up again. He stood silently watching me swing at the tree trunk for a moment before walking away.

"Why don't you want Jo coming?" Glenn asked Daryl as he climbed into the passenger seat of the truck next to him. "She's young, but she's really tough, maybe tougher than me." He admitted with a small smile.

"We don't know what's waiting for us on that rooftop," Daryl replied quietly. "If it ain't pretty, I don't want her seeing it. " The weight of his answer hung heavily in the air between the two men.

"Oh," Glenn said, starting up the truck, "Good call then." Daryl only grunted in response, looking out the window at his niece hacking furiously at the oak.

I watched the truck as it pulled out of camp. I stared until it was completely out of sight. I brought the axe up into swinging position, but stopped there, no longer feeling the desire to strike the tree. With a sigh, I put the axe down and sat on the ground, leaning against the tree. I closed my eyes and just took deep breathes. I was just focusing on not crying at this point.

The weight of this situation was crushing. Merle was out there chained like an animal to a rooftop and all I could do was sit here. I wanted to help him, I wanted to go out to Atlanta and run to where he was. Merle was abrasive, loud, and rude but he and Daryl had always been there for me when no one else was. Now they were both out there. Our entire family was completely split up.

Everyone in this camp looked at my uncles like they were just asshole rednecks but to me they were practically superheroes. They had rescued me from my old miserable life and had stood by and took care of me since then. They were all I had in this world and the thought of losing either of them made my heart feel heavy and my lungs feel tight.

"Johanna sweetheart?" A sweet voice called to me. I knew it was Carol without looking. I opened my eyes to see Carol and Amy standing a few feet away from me, staring at me with sympathetic smiles.

"Jo." I corrected flatly.

"Jo, would you like to come down to the water with the rest of us ladies and help out with the laundry?" Carol asked. I had often seen the women down there tirelessly cleaning but I had never joined them before. It seemed that everyone had their own jobs around here and laundry was theirs while I gathered food for everyone with my uncles. Carol and the others had actually cleaned mine and my uncle's clothes a few times already and even folded them before delivering the fresh clothes to our tents.

"You're inviting me into your laundry circle?" I asked with a hint of sarcasm in my voice.

"Yeah, I mean, it's a pretty exclusive club." Amy replied with a smirk. "You should feel really special that we are doing this." I gave a small chuckle at that and stood up.

"Why not," I muttered, picking up the axe and walking over to the women. "It's not like I'm doing anything right now anyway." Amy unexpectedly put her arm around my shoulder and I stiffened up a bit. I hadn't really spoken to the girl much. In fact, I hadn't really spoken to any of the women here much, besides saying thank you to Carol when she gave me clean clothes and the occasional casual greetings I shared with the others.

"Hold on a sec." I said to Amy, slipping from her grip as we passed by Dale's RV. "Hey Dale," I called up to the old man. He looked down at me from the roof of the vehicle and I held up the axe to him. "Thanks for the loan."

"Anytime young lady," He said with a kind smile as he bent down and accepted the axe. "In times like these, it's important to relieve your stress. If chopping away at that there oak makes you feel better, you should do it."

"Uh, thanks," I replied, returning the smile and walking back to the two women who were waiting for me. I purposely walked beside Carol so that the gray haired woman was between Amy and I and I wouldn't have to worry about her trying to hug me or something. Amy was a nice lady; I just didn't want her putting her arm around me like we were sorority sisters or some crap like that.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: sorry this update took so long but I've had a lot going on recently. Glad this chapter is finally up and I hope you all enjoy it!**

 _I sat one the little oak bench, lazily swinging my feet. My chin rested in my palm as I watched the second hand slowly make its way around the clock hanging on the wall in front of me. All I could do was wait in silence, listening to the ticking of that hand and the tapping of the high heels of my fourth grade teacher standing beside me. I wanted nothing more than to get up, rip the clock from its place on the wall, and stomp it until it could no longer tick._

 _Finally, the double doors at the end of the dim hallway swung open and a figure came stomping in. I recognized the gait as my uncles before he even stepped into the light. Merle wasn't my first choice of adult to represent me right now but he was the adult that was available. He marched right up to me and grabbed a hold of my chin, turning my head so he could get a good look at me. His nostrils flared at the sight of my fresh black eye and busted lip._

 _"Mr. Dixon I'm glad-" Mrs. Goldman began._

 _"Where are the parents of the little turd that did this to ma baby girl?" Merle cut her off sharply. The older woman raised her eyebrows and frowned at his rudeness._

 _"Mr. And Mrs. Gregory are in the hospital with their son. The boy has received about five stitches because of injuries inflicted by your niece."_

 _Merle didn't acknowledge the woman and just knelt beside me so his eyes were level with my own. "Jo, why don't ya tell your uncle Merle what happened?"_

 _"Bobby kept poppin' off about mom. Sayin' she's a no good whore. I told him to quit but he wouldn't listen so I pushed him down, then he got up and punched me right here," I paused to point at my black eye. "So I grabbed his head and hit it into the wall. That's when he started bleedin'." Merle nodded._

 _"Sounds to me like there ain't no problem here," Merle said to Mrs. Goldman. "You heard her girl was defendin' herself and her mama."_

 _"Mr. Dixon I'm afraid it's not that simple," she protested. "Johanna initiated the physical violence by putting her hands on the boy first."_

 _"What's she supposed to do huh? Sit there and get disrespected by some little shit kicking kid?" He retorted angrily. His voice was raised now and all I could do was sit there staring at that damn clock._

 _"Sir please do not raise your voice to me. You need to understand the severity of this situation. The Gregory family could press charges against Johanna if they decide it's in the best interest of their son. Trust me, I'm on your side here. I think Johanna is a great girl but this-"_

 _"There ain't no buts about it," Merle said, once again cutting her off. "And lady you're spittin' out more bullshit than a cows asshole. We're done here. Come on baby girl." He put out his hand to me and I took it gratefully. I wanted nothing more than to leave the school and right now my uncle was my savior for allowing me to do so._

 _"Excuse me, you cannot leave right now," she called after us as we walked down the hall. "There is serious business we need to discuss concerning Johanna's future in this school."_

 _"My name is Jo!" I shouted over my shoulder as my uncle pushed open the double doors and guided me through them. Mrs. Goldman fell into silence as my uncle let out a raspy laugh next to me._

 _We walked out of the school and got into Merle's truck that was parked right outside. Merle fastened me in the passenger seat, closed the door, then walked around to the drivers side. Once he was settled in, he turned to me with his face deadly serious._

 _"Ya did the right thing handlin' that boy the way ya did, ya hear me?" He said. I nodded solemnly in response. "You're a Dixon. That means ya don't take no shit from nobody, not your teachers, not strangers, and damn sure not some punk ass kid in the school yard, not even me. If someone puts your hands on ya, put em down. That's it. Ya understand me?"_

 _I looked him straight in the eye and gave him a clench jawed nod. "Yes sir."_

 _"That's my girl," he said with a toothy smile. "Now we gonna get some ice cream to celebrate ya not takin shit from no one."_

I was sitting far from the fire and the rest of the group. The warmth from the flames was inviting but the thought of sitting with those people right now was damn near nauseating. I'd gotten my fill of group time today between fighting with the men and doing laundry with the women. If I was being perfectly honest the only people over there I had issue with was Shane and the wife beater, Ed. But those two were more than enough to keep me away.

I had a blanket wrapped over my shoulders and my gun beside me. I was half heartedly doodling in the only notepad and pencil I had since me and my uncles had been forced to evacuate or home. I only had a handful of possessions and these two things made up almost half of them. I never thought such trivial objects would become so treasured.

But as I etched on the paper, my mind could not escape my uncle Merle. All I could think about was all the fond memories I had of him. For as long as I could remember, he'd always been there, holding my hand and getting me through every challenge in life. His way of handling things wasn't always right but it always made me feel safe. I wiped at my eyes roughly as they became misty. I was determined not to cry. Crying meant that I was accepting that Merle wasn't coming back and that was not something I was willing to accept.

Suddenly a scream rang out from the RV. I sprang up and saw Amy standing in the doorway of the vehicle, her arm being torn into by a walker. Andrea cried out in horror at the sight of her sister being attacked. I grabbed my gun and ran towards everyone as fast as I could.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: From now on, I'm going to try my best to update at least every weekend. This is a bit of a short chapter but I most post another one farely soon. Tell me what you guys think of it so far and I hope you enjoy!**

The next few moments were a blur. Our small camp was being swarmed in all directions by walkers. In the darkness it was hard to even tell the living from the dead. All I could hear was panicked screams from children, directions being shouted by Shane, and Andrea's wailing over her sisters body. I fired at every walker I could see, trying not to be distracted by the panic around me.

Andrea was completely unaware of the three undead closing in around her as she pointlessly pressed her hands to her sisters wound. I shot down two walkers as they approached the sisters but my gun gave a fatal click when I attempted to kill the last one. Empty.

"Get to the RV! Go!" Shane screamed. He was simultaneously guided Lori and Carl to the RV while firing off rounds into the undead. I turned to follow his lead but I looked back to Andrea and saw that walker slowly stumbling it's way towards her.

"Shit," I muttered as I ran towards the exposed sisters, pulling my machete out. I lunged at the final walker, plunging the blade straight through its forehead. I closed my eyes to shield from the blood that splattered from the wound onto my face and neck. The limp body collapsed onto the floor beside Amy's feet. I wiped at my face with the inside of my bare arm and looked down at Andrea. I reached out to touch her shoulder but hesitated the moment before making contact. "Andrea we gotta get to the RV."

"I don't know what to do Amy," Andrea whispered to her dying sister. Another walker approached us and I kicked it in the stomach, knocking it to the ground. I quickly got on top of it and stabbed it in the head.

"Andrea we have to move!" I shouted this time. Andrea ignored me again and just continued to mutter unidentifiable words to Amy. Suddenly, two walkers appeared from the trees and began to make their ways towards us. I lifted my machete above my head and brought it crashing down on the corpses exposed skull. The blade went halfway through the head and wouldn't budge. I pushed my boot against the walkers shoulder as I pulled on my only weapon, trying to get it loose. Before I could, the other walker was on me. It grabbed at my arms and I had to drop my grip on the machete to hold the monsters head away from my flesh.

"Andrea!" I shrieked as the walker snapped it's teeth mere inches from my face. "Andrea please!" In a panic I stumbled backwards and feel to the ground with the walker still on top of me. I turned to Andrea and saw that she hadn't even glanced my way. She still sat in the same position, cradling Amy's bloody face. "Please help me!" I begged to her. It was the first time I had ever begged for my life. I pushed as hard as I could to get the thing off me but it persisted in its attack. In desperation I let out a loud scream, praying that someone, anyone, would help.

My prayers were quickly answered when an arrow flew into the walkers head and it's dead weight fell on to me. I took rapid, shallow breaths as Daryl ran to me and knocked the dead body off of me. It was all I could do to keep from crying. He lifted me up and put both hands on my shoulders.

"Jo, ya alright?" He asked loudly. I opened my mouth to speak but it felt as though my throat was tightly closed. "Answer me! Are ya hurt?" He shook me and I swallowed painfully. I still couldn't muster the words but I shook my head no. Daryl nodded and took my hand. "Stay close to me," he directed.

I moved through the scene with a white knuckled grip on my uncles hand. Gunshots were going off all around us and I turned to my right and saw Glenn beside me. Realization punched me in the face as I saw Rick and T-Dog as well. The group was back from the city.

But Merle wasn't with them.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thank you so much for the support I've been getting on this story! Your reviews, favorites, and follows are always greatly appreciated. So, here's chapter five and I'm excited to be getting through season 1 pretty quickly. I hope you all enjoy!**

With a loud grunt, Daryl brought the pick axe down into the head of the corpse. He then moved on to the next dead body as Glenn and T-Dog came behind him and carried the corpse to the nearby flame. Smoke billowed out from the fire as the bodies of the deceased burned, sending out the sickly smell of charred flesh.

I moved over to another corpse and knelt beside it. She was one of the women in the camp whose name I couldn't even remember but I knew her by the long black hair. She used to always smile at me when we made eye contact. Now her face was nearly unrecognizable. Her skin had been pulled away by the hungry hands and teeth of walkers. Where had I been when she'd been killed? Had she begged for her life last night just as I had? I held my machete with two hands, above her head.

"Sorry," my voice was barely a whisper as I plunged the blade sprightly through her temple. I pulled it out and wiped it off on the woman's shirt.

"How you doin'?" Daryl asked, standing beside me with the massive axe in his hands. I wiped at the sweat on my forehead with my arm and stood up.

"Fine. You?" He gave a small nod in response. He began to walk away from me but I spoke up. "Daryl?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you remember this woman's name?" I asked, pointing down at the dead body at our feet. He looked down and furrowed his eyebrows at the mangled figure.

"Nah," he answered. "Do you?"

"If I did, I wouldn't be asking you," I replied. He did a little half smirk at that. I looked around to see if there was someone else I could ask but they all seemed busy gathered around Andrea and her dead sister, trying to figure out their next move. Andrea was currently refusing to leave her sisters side or put her down for some reason. I shook my head and turned my focus back to making sure the fallen members of the group didn't turn. The whole group knew Amy was going to turn any minute now but they didn't know what to do about it.

I heard several gasps to my right and I turned to see Andrea pointing a gun at Rick. I tapped on Daryl's shoulder and pointed at the scene. We both watched in silence as Rick backed away from the woman with his hands up in surrender. He joined in the others who were all gathered around watching Andrea as she knelt over her dead sister. Andrea put the gun away and turned her attention back to staring at Amy. Daryl scoffed in disgust and aggressively stabbed into another corpse with the pick axe.

"That bitch is weak," I said to him, "Andrea I mean. She's dragging the whole group down."

"No she ain't," Daryl replied, moving onto the next body.

"What? You think she's strong?" I asked in disbelief as I followed him.

"No she's weak, but she ain't draggin' the group down. They're doing that themselves. The whole damn lot of them is weak. Most of 'em can't tell they ass from their elbow and the rest are either dead or gonna die soon. We outta leave now." He stabbed another one.

"They're not all weak," I protested. "Glenn goes into the city for supplies all the time. He puts his neck on the line just to keep this group going."

"Don't matter if they got one brave China man," Daryl spat, "It's only a matter of time before they all get each other killed." He continued on with stabbing bodies. I sighed as I considered what he was saying. There was no denying that this was a broken group, last night proved that. But as I looked out at them, I remembered myself as a small child, being handed my first gun by Merle. It was a rifle taller than I was but he taught me how to use it.

"They'll learn eventually," I said, kneeling down beside a body, "you know, adapt to their environment. They don't have a choice. You just gotta give them time."

"Yeah? And what's gonna happen in the mean time?" He questioned, dropping his pick axe to the ground. He was furious. I swallowed hard and took a deep breath in order to stay calm. This conversation was a long time coming. "We already lost Merle because of these assholes! I almost lost you lost night too thanks to blondie over there! While they're busy adapting, we're out there getting' their meals, saving their lives, and almost dyin' doin' it!"

"Well they're all we got now!" I shouted. I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw Glenn and T-Dog staring at us.

"To hell they are!" Daryl yelled back, angrily pacing. "This group don't mean nothin' to me! They left my brother for dead on that roof! You really just gonna forgive them for what they did to your uncle?"

"No! I don't forgive them and I probably never will. But for now, they're the group we got. You and I leave and we might never find another group. It might be just the two of us, taking on the whole goddamn world. I don't like those odds."

"We're survivors Jo," he reasoned, his voice calmer now, "you and I will make it wherever we go. We don't need these people."

"Maybe all you see is weak links and extra mouths to feed when you look around this camp," I said. "But I see a community. I see potential for rebuilding and maybe the possibility of life being even a little bit normal."

"You think these people can rebuild the world?" He asked.

I closed my eyes and sighed. "It's gotta start somewhere, right?"

"Let's finish this shit up," Daryl muttered, walking away from me. I couldn't help but smile as I wondered if I'd actually succeeded in giving Daryl some confidence in this group. They weren't perfect and they had a lot to learn, but I saw a fire in some of them. A lot of the ones I didn't see that in were now being put down by my uncle and I. Others, like Andrea, were more problematic. I was more worried about her getting other people killed, than getting herself killed.

"A walker got him!" Jacqui screamed suddenly. I looked up and saw her frantically getting everyone's attention. "A walker bit Jim!"

Within a few seconds a large circle had formed around Jim. Everyone looked around nervously, unsure of what to do next. I stayed where I was and watched everything unfold in front of me. I could see Jim's fear as he paced uneasily, looking around with wild eyes at the people surrounding him. He looked like a caged animal.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," he repeated to everyone.

"Show it to us!" Daryl demanded, stepping towards Jim with his axe in hand. Jim didn't say a word but he reached behind him and picked up a shovel of the ground. He held it up defensively and shocked chatter swept through the group.

"Easy Jim," Shane said calmly, his hands out as if to show he means no harm.

"Grab him!" Daryl shouted. As Shane continued to try to talk Jim down, telling him to drop the shovel, T-Dog ran up behind the terrified man and trapped him in a tight grip from behind. Jim dropped the shovel and Daryl took the opportunity to lift the mans shirt, revealing a big red bite mark on his stomach.

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair at the sight. Everyone looked at him in stunned silence. What do you say to a man who won't live to see tomorrow? All we could do was listen to him as he repeatedly stated "I'm okay, I'm okay, I'm okay." I wasn't sure if he was trying to convince us or himself.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Getting close with finishing season one! I hope you all enjoy this new chapter, it's quite a lengthy one compared to the others.**

Amy's funeral had ended hours ago. The crowd who had watched on in awkward silence as Andrea dragged her younger sister into a hole, had long dispersed. It was now me, Daryl, Glenn, and T-Dog burying the rest of the people we'd lost. It seemed as though Amy was the only one truly being mourned around here. Merle's possible death appeared to be more of a relief than a tragedy amongst everyone and nobody was shedding any tears for Carols abusive husband, Ed. Now we were just burying the people that had no one to mourn for them.

I finished piling dirt on top of a shallow grave and got to work with constructing a cross to put on top of it. I tied two thick tree limbs together with the torn sleeve of a jean jacket that belonged to one of the deceased. There was no point in wasting good rope and no one wanted to wear a garment covered in a dead mans blood. I finished the project and forced the makeshift headstone into the ground.

"Looks good," Glenn said, standing next to me with a shovel in his hands.

"Thanks," I replied with a soft smile. "It doesn't have a name on it though. Seemed that no one in the camp could remember who the poor bastard was."

"Just giving him a proper burial is honoring his life," he replied, continuing to shovel dirt into another grave. "We might not know all these people's names but they were still a part of our group. Marking their graves means something."

"It doesn't mean anything if their name isn't on it," I said, bothered by the blank cross staring back at me.

"Of course it does," Glenn protested.

"How?" I asked.

"Shows the world they were here," T-Dog jumped in. "They were here and they had people who cared enough to give 'em the respect they deserve in death."

I nodded at the men in understanding. There words made sense but they didn't exactly make me feel better about burying near strangers. It bothered me that they were even strangers to me. My uncles and I had been apart of this group for a while already but I hardly interacted with anyone outside of my own blood. Putting these people in the ground was the first and last interaction I was having with many of them.

"Hey Johanna," Dale called out to me as he walked over to the grave sight. I hadn't even noticed him approaching before he spoke. "I'm going out on a sweep, was hoping you would come with me. You're a pretty good shot and going out alone is never a good idea."

"I'll go instead," Daryl replied before I could.

"Hey no way!" I protested. "I've been stuck on dead body duty all day! I'm outta here." I grabbed my gun off the ground and walked up to Dale. "Besides I'm better company."

Daryl scoffed at me and Dale and I began trekking into the woods, guns in hand. I was following his lead as he made this sweep often on this route. Both our heads snapped to the side at the sound of rustling leaves. A walker emerged from the greenery, stumbling its way towards us. Dale lifted his gun to shoot it but I put my hand on the barrel and pushed it down.

"It's only one," I told him, pulling out my machete, "why waste the ammo?" I easily took down the thing down with a swift stab to the head. I wiped the blade on the walkers mangled shirt and put it back into its holster.

"You're a real tough kid you know that?" Dale said with an impressed smile on his face.

"I'm sixteen," I corrected him.

"Well then, you're a tough teenager."

"You're pretty good with that gun yourself," I told him. "You know, for an old timer." He gave a big hearty laugh at this. It was a pleasant sound and it caused a smile to creep onto my face. Dale had that friendly grandpa air about him. He was the kind of grandpa I also fantasized about having instead of the mean old drunk I got.

"Your uncles teach you to fight the way you do?" Dale asked.

"Yeah they taught me everything I know," I told him. "I've been hunting since I was a little girl and Merle first put a gun in my hand." I smiled at the happy feeling it gave me to talk about such fond memories. I looked at Dale and could see the curiosity in his eyes. "Go ahead and ask," I said with a sigh.

"Last night, around the fire, everyone was talking about their families, the ones they'd lost. I think it does a person good to talk about the tragedies they've faced."

"Did you ever think that there was a reason I wasn't sitting around your little campfire? Maybe I don't want to talk." I told him coldly.

"Then I won't pry," he answered simply. I nodded to him and we continued on in silence. The sweep was proving to be most uneventful to my relief. I'd been eager to go on this trip because I needed to get away from camp for a bit, not because I was hoping to run into some action. I was still exhausted from the night before. After the walkers were taken care of, nobody had a chance to rest, we all had to get to work with clearing out the bodies and digging graves.

"You know," Dale said suddenly, breaking the silence, "I couldn't help but overhear the conversation you had with your uncle this morning."

"You heard everything?" I asked, thinking back on all the harsh words we'd said.

"I may be old, but I'm not deaf," Dale said with a smile.

"I know Daryl comes off as cold to all you people, but he cares about family more than anything. He'll fight for this group but my safety is the most important thing to him." I explained.

"Johanna, I'm-"

"Jo," I corrected him.

"Jo," he began again, "I'm not looking for an explanation. In fact, in many ways I agree with everything your uncle had to say."

"Really?" I asked, unable to hide my surprise.

"Absolutely," he answered, "there's no denying the fact that you two are stronger than pretty much everyone else in this group. It's almost as if you and your uncle were made for survival. It's a trait I envy if I'm being perfectly honest."

"Wow," I muttered, "thanks."

"No, I should be thanking you."

"For what?" I asked.

"For believing in this group," he replied, "for having faith in all of us."

"Safety in numbers," I said with a half smile, "and pretty decent company." Dale smiled widely and we continued on in silence for a few moments. "So, did you ask me to make this sweep with you just so you could tell me that?"

"That and my reflexes aren't what they used to be." We both chuckled and kept on moving. I raised my gun suddenly at the sound of voices in the distance. Dale stepped close to me and put his hand on my shoulder. "It's just Shane and Rick, they were sweeping the east of the camp. Guess they made their way into our route."

We began to walk towards the sound of their voices until we saw them in the distance. The two of us were only a few feet from Shane when I noticed he was standing tensely with his gun raised. My heart dropped when I realized he was aiming the weapon on Rick. He was breathing heavily and he had death in his eyes. I was so stunned by the sight that I said nothing but I raised my own gun so that it was aimed directly at Shane. Finally, Shane lowered the weapon with a deep breath and turned around, looking surprised when he saw Dale and I standing so close.

"Jesus," Dale said in awe. Shane stared back at the older man and let out a deep chuckle.

"I know," he said, "gonna have to start wearing reflective vests out here." He stared at me, seemingly expecting me to lower my gun. I stared directly back at him, unwavering, and refusing to back down. I know what I had just seen. "Seriously." Shane said, as if trying to convince Dale and I of his honesty. He turned away from us from us and called out to Rick. He told him that there was nothing out here and the two went marching off together, leaving Dale and I.

"What the hell was that?" I thought aloud, lowering my gun when Shane was out of sight.

"Something I wish I hadn't seen," Dale replied solemnly.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Bit of a short one here but I hope you all enjoy!**

It was decided, we were moving out of the camp. The general consensus was to try our luck with the Center for Disease Control. I didn't really care where we went as long as it wasn't here anymore. The whole place felt like a graveyard to me now and I was more than ready to leave it behind. The CDC seemed like a logical place to try out, considering how slim our options were for new places to set up shop.

After the announcement that the group was moving, I got busy packing what few possessions uncle and I had. Besides weapons, all we really owned now was clothes and a bag of prescription pills in multicolored bottles. For some reason, that had been the only thing Merle had bothered to grab from home before we evacuated. It seemed pointless at the time since there would be no one to deal them to, but now medication was a valuable commodity.

I stuffed the meds into my book bag, along with my last articles of clothing. I folded Daryl's few clothes for him and shoved them into his bag. The only thing left was Merle's long sleeved black flannel. It was worn out and torn in a couple spots but he used to wear it often. He'd opted to not wear it on the supply run to Atlanta the day he was left behind, so here it was. I had washed it with the other women the day Daryl went out to save him.

I sighed and slipped my arm into the right sleeve. The fabric hung loosely over my hand, covering all of my digits. I pulled on the other sleeve and rolled them both up to my elbows. I would probably have to cut the sleeves off or have Carol stitch them up higher for me if I was going to be able to actually get anything done in it.

"Looks good," Daryl said from behind me. I turned and gave him a small smile. "I found this, don't know if you still want it," he held out my notepad to me. I had dropped it when the walkers invaded camp and had completely forgotten about it until now. I took it in my hands but my face fell when I saw that the pages were stained with blood. I flipped through it with a heavy heart, looking at each ruined drawing and empty page.

"I don't even know whose blood that is," I said, setting it down on the ground beside me. "Thanks, but I'll find a new one somewhere." Daryl nodded and picked up the two bags I had packed. He tossed them in the backseat of Merle's truck, which had his motorcycle strapped securely in the back, and opened up the passenger side door. I got up, stepped into the big vehicle and collapsed into the seat, completely exhausted. Daryl closed the door behind me and walked around to the drivers side.

I closed my eyes as the engine hummed to life and we followed the rest of the vehicles as everyone made their way uphill and onto the road. The entire group was split into four separate cars with Dale's RV leading the way. As Daryl drove in silence beside me, I drifted off to the familiar hum of the old engine.


	8. Chapter 8

_"Jewels? You here?" Daryl called into the house, cautiously pushing the front door open further. I stood behind him on my tip toes, peeking over his shoulder._

 _"No one's home," I muttered, "no one's ever home." I moved to go past him but his put his arm up, blocking my way. The only sound from inside the small house was the staticky voices coming from the radio in the kitchen._

 _"Something ain't right here," Daryl insisted as he walked in further._

 _"Just because the front door is open, doesn't mean something's wrong," I retorted, pushing past him. As soon as I entered the living room, a rancid smell assaulted me._

 _"You smell that?" Daryl asked._

 _"Of course I do," I answered, covering my nose with the sleeve of my sweater. "Maybe something came in from the open door and died in here, like a squirrel or something. Remember when that dead possum got in vents?"_

 _Daryl shrugged with a quiet grunt in response. I dropped my book bag on the floor and walked over to the kitchen counter. I unplugged the little radio and looked over the kitchen, expecting to find a dead raccoon or something on the cracked tile floor. What I saw made my breath catch in my throat. My eyes went wide as I made my way around the counter slowly. I could hear Daryl's voice behind me but it was overpowered by the sound of my heart beat ringing in my ears._

 _Splayed across the tile with blood pooling out around her mouth, was my mom. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were glassed over, staring out into nothing. The milky color of her eyes matched that of her pale skin. I dropped down beside her and reached out with a shaking hand. My mind had gone entirely numb, making it impossible to create words. All I could manage to voice was a blood curdling scream as I wrapped my arms around my moms lifeless body. She was still and cold in my grip, her body shifting like that of a mannequin. All I could do was hold her and cry, hold her and cry._

 _Suddenly, I felt strong hands grab ahold of me and begin to pull me away from her. I fought against the grip, violently flailing and thrashing. In my frantic state, I didn't even realize that it was my uncle pulling me away. I screamed out in protest, reaching out to her pale form. Daryl picked me up off the ground easily and carried me out of the kitchen. I didn't take my eyes off my mom until I could no longer see her._

 _"Let me go!" I cried, finally managing to croak out actual words. Daryl said nothing but he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me in tightly to him. I allowed myself to relax into the embrace and just kept on crying._

 _"She's gone Jo," he whispered, "she's gone Jo."_

"Jo!"

I shot up in my seat, breathing raggedly. It took me a moment to remember that I was in the passenger seat of my uncles car. I squeezed my eyes shut and rubbed them. When I opened them again I looked at my uncle and saw him staring at me expectedly.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, "what happened? Why did we stop?"

"Everyone stopped," he told me, "something's up with that stupid RV." I nodded and looked out the window, chewing anxiously on my nail. Up ahead in the road I saw all the other vehicles had stopped and everyone was gathering around the RV. "You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah fine," I answered, "just had a bad dream." Daryl nodded and got out of the car. I opened my door and stepped out, taking deep breaths, trying to snap myself out of the familiar pain my dreams so often brought me.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: This chapter took a while since I'm still reeling from that season finale. Hopefully this story can help you guys get through this walking dead drought in between seasons lol. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

The RV was steaming spitting out steam at an alarming rate. I was no expert on vehicles but it was pretty obvious that this one wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. Everyone was gathered around, looking exhausted and impatient. No one knew how to remedy the issue. If Merle was still around he'd probably be able to do something. He'd always been pretty good with cars. There had been several times in which he tried to teach me how cars worked. I was basically useless when it came to repairs, but my uncle did show me how to hot wire a car; a skill that landed me my first arrest in my freshman year of high school.

"Y'all Jim," Jacqui cried in a panic, dashing out of the RV, "it's bad. I don't think he can take anymore." She went back inside and everyone exchanged wary looks. I sighed at kicked at some rocks on the side of the road. I had known Daryl was right when he thought we shouldn't have brought Jim with us. We were now all facing the inevitable, Jim had reached the end of the road.

"Hey, Rick, you want to hold down the fort?" Shane asked. "I'll drive ahead, see what I can bring back."

"Yeah, I'll come along too and I'll back you up," T-Dog added.

"Y'all keep your eyes open now, we'll be right back," Shane told everyone as he and T-Dog walked over to his car. Rick entered the RV to check on Jim's condition and everyone quietly disbanded.

"I'll keep watch," I said, to no one in particular. I grabbed my rifle from the truck and climbed up the ladder to the roof of the RV. I stood on the roof, gun in hand, staring out at the city skyline. As we moved further and further from Atlanta, I couldn't help but feel as though Daryl and I were some how abandoning Merle. I had been devastated when he'd been left behind, and I was still missing him, but I wasn't mourning him. I wasn't grieving over his death because to me, he wasn't dead. Over the years, I've seen my uncles get out of countless situations that should have easily landed them in prison or in a coffin. Maybe it was childish ignorance, but to me, my uncles were indestructible. After watching Merle cheat death before, I'm sure he could do it again, even with one hand.

I watched Shane and T-Dog as they returned from their little trip and immediately got busy with Dale, working on the RV. I half paid attention to what they were doing but I still had that lingering pain in my heart at the thought of Merle out there struggling for survival. The mere idea of him waiting for Daryl and I to come and rescue him somewhere was enough for me to want to hop into the truck and search every inch of Atlanta for that jerk. He'd always been there for me without question, and now when he needed me, I was powerless to save him. A search mission in a city crawling with walkers was complete suicide. He would be impossible to track so it would just end up being a wild goose chase that would probably get someone killed.

For now I would just have to hope that somehow, someday, my uncle would find his way back to his family. If he was here right now he'd smack me upside the head for thinking that hope alone would get anything done. He'd tell me to get off my ass and go find him. I wish I could, but for now childish dreams would have to do.

"Everyone," Rick said loudly, getting everyone's attention as he stepped out of the RV. I sat at the edge of the roof to listen to what he had to say. "Jim can't go on like this anymore, says he wants us to leave him here."

"But we're already so close," Lori protested. "We can get him help."

"It's what he says he wants," Rick said.

"And he's lucid?" Carol asked in disbelief. Everyone shared the same looks of surprise and sorrow. Daryl looked a bit grim but not exactly shocked. He had warned everyone before we left camp that Jim wouldn't make it and it was a bad idea to bring him. I didn't know how to feel about the whole thing. I was of course sad that Jim was going to die, but I barely knew the man. I was still thinking about the loss of my uncle. The loss of a near stranger seemed so insignificant in comparison.

"He seems to be," Rick answered, "I would say yes."

"Back in the camp when I said Daryl might be right, and you shut me down, you misunderstood." Dale suddenly spoke up. "I would never go along with callously killing a man. I was just gonna suggest that we ask Jim what he wants. And I think we have an answer." His words hung heavily in the air.

"We should honor the mans wish," I agreed. Everyone looked up, surprised to hear me speak up in the group debate. I don't think Rick had even noticed I'd been listening. "His final request to us, we gotta honor it."

"So we just leave him here?" Shane asked, "We take off? Man, I'm not sure I could live with that."

"It's not your call, either one of you," Lori said. With that, it was agreed that we would leave Jim behind. Shane and Rick helped carry him out of the RV and placed him under the shade of a large tree. I hung back as everyone said their personal goodbyes. Even Daryl approached the dying man and gave him a silent farewell nod. I was already in the truck by the time everyone was finished and had gotten back into their vehicles.

"You alright?" Daryl asked as he got into the drivers seat and turned on the ignition. We started driving, once again following the long strip of vehicles in front of us. I looked out the window and saw Jim sitting there, staring right back at me. I raised one hand and gave him the slightest of waves. He gave me a weak wave in return then closed his eyes and leaned back.

"Jo, you alright?" Daryl asked again.

"Fine."


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Almost through with season one people! As usual, please enjoy!**

"Is this it?" I asked, leaning out of my window as all the vehicles pulled over, one behind the other. I scrunched up my face at the overwhelming stench of rotten flesh. Dead bodies were strewn around the area surrounding the CDC.

"This don't look good," Daryl muttered in response. He grabbed his crossbow and got out of the truck. I followed suit and joined the others outside. Everyone was coughing and covering their faces to shield their noses from the horrible stench. Both Carol and Lori held their children close to them while the men led everyone with guns raised. "Stay close to me," Daryl told me over his shoulder. I raised my rifle and swatted away at the flies circling the air.

"Alright everybody, keep moving, go on," Shane whispered to the group. "Stay quiet, let's go." We all followed his and Rick's lead as we made our way to the building.

"We should leave now," I whispered to Daryl, "this place is a dead end." The smell was starting to give me a nauseous feeling and I could feel the sting of bile in the back of my throat. The whole place radiated death. I wanted nothing more than to get back in the truck and get the hell out of here.

"First sign a trouble and we're gone," Daryl assured me. I nodded but could feel my heart pounding with nervousness as we approached the eerily quiet structure. Shane continued to whisper commands but I was zoning him out, trying to focus on my surroundings.

Shane was pounding on a large closed metal door, obviously frustrated and desperate for a response. I stepped back and looked the building up and down. The place was completely dark and I shook my head, doubting that we would find anything here.

"There's nobody here," T-Dog said.

"Then why are these shutters down?" Rick retorted.

"Who gives a shit why they closed the shutters before abandoning the place?" I spat in frustration. I looked around and saw several dead ones approaching us from different directions.

"Walkers!" Daryl shouted, shooting one in the head with an arrow. "You led us into a graveyard!" He yelled accusingly at Rick.

"He made a call!" Shane defended.

"Well it was the wrong damn call!" Daryl shouted back.

"Just shut up! You hear me? Shut up. Shut up!" Shane growled at my uncle, shoving him backwards.

"Back off Shane," I told him angrily, stepping between the two of them, "he's right and you know it, just look around."

"Rick this is a dead end," Shane told his friend.

"Where are we gonna go?" Carol asked in a panic.

"Anywhere but here," I exclaimed.

"We can't be here, this close to the city after dark," Lori said. Carl was beginning to cry as he held tight to his moms hand.

"Fort Benning Rick, still an option," Shane offered.

"On what?" Dale asked, "No food, no fuel, that's a hundred miles!"

"A hundred and twenty-five, I check the map," Glenn added.

"Forget Fort Benning," Lori cried, "we need answers tonight, now!"

"We need to get out of the open," I said, pointing out at a few walkers in the distance. A few people looked at the approaching walkers with panic in their eyes. "Let's at least go back to the cars, we can't do this out here."

"Let's get out of here," Lori agreed.

"Alright everybody, back to cars," Shane commanded. He waved everyone away and we began to hustle back to the vehicles. "Let's go, move!"

"The camera, it moved!" Rick suddenly shouted, still standing in front of the closed door. I rolled my eyes at his refusal to leave this place. His stubbornness was going to get him killed and I sure as hell wasn't going to go down with him over an abandoned building.

"You imagined it," Shane dismissed him.

"It moved," he whispered, moving in closer to the camera.

Shane continued to argue with Rick as more and more walkers began to appear around us. I pulled my machete out, ready to fight. I wanted to avoid using my gun if possible, knowing that gunshots would only attract more of them.

"Jo, to your right!" Daryl shouted to me. I turned and saw a walker only a few feet away. I marched over to it and thrust my blade through its skull. Behind me, Daryl shot another close one through the head.

"If you don't let us in, you're killing us!" Rick screamed into the camera. He slammed his hands furiously on the metal doors.

"Shut him up!" I commanded to no one in particular. "He's attracting them all here!" Shane looked at me and when we made eye contact, he nodded. He ran up behind Rick and wrapped an arm around the frenzied mans chest.

"Come on buddy, let's go," Shane said as he pulled the other man away.

"You're killing us! You're killing us!" Rick continued to scream as he was dragged away. He wrestled out of Shane's grip, a look of defeat plastered on his face.

Suddenly, a bright light was cast on us from the building. I turned around in awe as the metal door rose with a clang. I squinted into the bright light, agape. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Relief washed over me and I released a heavy sigh.

"Well shit," I breathed.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Gettkng close to that season one finale! I'm excited to start up season two and hopefully you guys are too. Enjoy!**

Dr. Edwin Jenner did not seem exactly stable to me, but I wasn't really in a position to question the mans sanity. He had opened the doors to his facility to us, taken a chance on a bunch of strangers banging on his door. The doctor appeared in a constant state of unease but I guess being alone for so long can do that to a person.

Nobody objected to him taking blood tests as a cost of admission into the building, although not everyone saw the point in it. After all, if any of us were sick, Jenner wouldn't need a blood test to find out. He would just have to look at someone bit and he would see death on their face. Daryl had grumbled a bit but ultimately didn't put up a fight about getting his blood drawn. I found a strange enjoyment in getting my blood drawn by the doctor. I had assumed that doctors visits and everything that came with them were luxuries of the old world. So it was oddly relaxing to feel that familiar prick of the needle and watch the red liquid flow through the clear tube. Funny how I found myself missing such trivial things from before the world went to shit.

Doctor Jenner had been kind enough to show us to the cafeteria where there was plenty of food to go around. Carol and Lori prepared spaghetti and meatballs while Dale got busy popping open wine bottles. We were all enjoying the meal, drinking and laughing. The jovial atmosphere was a breath of fresh air after so many days of death and scarcity of food. I hadn't been drunk in a while and hadn't realized how much I wanted to be until my uncle poured me a glass of wine at dinner. I finished off my second glass, stood up, and held up the empty cup.

"Dale," I called to the man who had taken charge of pouring drinks, "hit me." Dale accepted my glass with a chuckle.

"For such a young lady," Dale said as he handed me a half full cup, "you drink like a sailor."

"Well the legal drinking age doesn't really apply anymore on account of the world ending," I replied, accepting the drink. "So, unless my uncle or the man with the Sheriffs badge has anything to say about it, I'd like to get shit faced." With that, I threw back the glass, swallowing the whole thing in one gulp. The table burst into laughter again and I sat down with a big smile.

"Shit, she's a Dixon alright," Daryl said, coming up behind me and refilling my glass. I've been drinking since I was able to walk. My mom used to put whiskey in my juice so I would fall asleep and she wouldn't have to worry about me. When I got older I would steal booze from wherever I could find, whether it was my uncles or my mom or one of her boyfriends. It had gotten me into trouble a couple times in my teenage years, but I was always more concerned with having a good time than considering the consequences. Besides, I was a great drinker. I never blacked out and hangovers were practically a foreign concept to me now. I could drink all night and all I would feel was absolute bliss and maybe a bit of grogginess.

"You know, in Italy," Dale announced as he passed a full glass to Lori, "children have a little bit of wine with dinner, and in France!"

"Well when Carl is in Italy in France, he can have some then," Lori replied strictly. I rolled my eyes but couldn't help but smile at her overprotective nature. Part of me has always longed for an overly protective parent although I had always enjoyed my lax lifestyle under the care of my uncles.

"What's it gonna hurt?" Rick argued with a smile, "come on." Everyone nodded to Lori with wide anticipated smiles but she still looked hesitant.

"You can't go wrong with fine wine being the boys first drink," I told her, winking at Carl. The young boy giggled in response. Lori raised her hands in surrender and shook her head with a smile.

"There you are young lad," Dale said to the boy, handing him a glass. Carl accepted it with an excited face and took and eager sip. His face immediately scrunched up in disgust and he put the drink down with a resounding 'ew'. Everyone at the table burst into laughter at his reaction.

"That's my boy, that's my boy," Lori said, patting him on the bag as he stuck out his tongue and shook his head.

"Well just stick to soda pop there bud," Shane muttered. I was a little surprised to hear him speak as he'd been spending most of the meal brooding.

"Not you Glenn," Daryl said.

"What?" Glenn asked, looking up from his drink, already completely buzzed.

"Keep drinking little man," Daryl told him, "I wanna see how red your face can get." Everyone went into another fit of laughter at Glenn's expensive who blushed in embarrassment at being teased.

"This fancy stuff is good," I said, "but it ain't nothing compared to some bathtub gin."

"Now that is a proper first drink!" My uncle declared, pointing at me.

"What's that?" Glenn asked, looking excited at the thought of a stronger drink.

"Ancient redneck recipe," I told him, clinking our glasses, "guaranteed to knock you straight on your ass." Laughter rang out through the room again. The noise settled down as Rick stood up, clinking his glass.

"It seems to me we haven't thanked our host properly," he announced.

"He is more than just our host," T-Dog added, raising his own glass. Everyone at the table raised their drinks with him.

"Hear, hear!" Everyone cheered in unison.

"Booyah!" Daryl shouted in celebration. Everyone echoed his cheer in return. Everyone said their thank you's to the doctor who raised his glass with a solemn smile in response.

"So when are you gonna tell us what the hell happened here Doc?" Shane suddenly asked. An air of awkward silence fell over the group and I immediately wished Shane had stuck to silent brooding. "All the other doctors," he continued, "that were supposed to be figuring out what happened, where are they?"

"We're celebrating, Shane," Rick said, his tone sounding warning, "don't need to do this now."

"Whoa, wait a second," Shane retorted, "this is why we're here right? This was your move, supposed to find all the answers. Instead we found him," he motioned to Dr. Jenner with his thumb. "Found one man, why?"

"Well, when things got bad, all of people just left, went off to be with their families." Jenner calmly explained, "And, when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted."

"Every last one?" Shane asked.

"No," Jenner answered, "many couldn't face walking out the door. They opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time." I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, missing the pleasant atmosphere from a few moments ago. I said nothing and tried to finish off my spaghetti and meatballs as silent as possible.

"But you didn't leave," Andrea said, "why?"

"I just kept working," the doctor told her, "hoping to do some good."

"Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man." Glenn said to Shane, who maintained that glum expression. I just stayed quiet, not in the mood to joke around and exchange stories anymore. I just chewed on the noodles, not obnoxiously slurping them for probably the first time in my life.


	12. Chapter 12

"Why the hell are you so good at this girl?" T-Dog asked as I easily sunk another ball. I laughed as I chalked the tip of my pool cue and walked around to the other side of the table.

"Oh I've been playing this since elementary school," I boasted, "yeah, me and my uncles used to hustle rednecks all day. No drunk asshole thinks they can lose to a little girl." I smiled at the memory and shot another ball into the corner pocket. T-Dog groaned as it became apparent that this game was going to end just as the last two had. I ran my hand through my hair that was still wet from the shower. It felt amazing to have clean hair again.

"What was it like living with two guys like that?" Glenn asked from the couch. When we had started playing, Glenn had been too drunk to really play properly so he settled on watching. His face had actually gotten pretty red in the end.

"My childhood wasn't ideal," I told him honestly, "but it wasn't bad. At least, not as bad as you guys probably think it was. My uncles might just seem like redneck assholes to this group, but to me, they've always just been family. They were always there no matter what happened, always. And, he may not seem it, but Daryl's really just a big softie deep down."

"I'll believe that when I see it," T-Dog laughed, taking another sip of his beer. I shrugged and stared at the table, carefully deciding my next move.

"Where is Daryl anyway?" Glenn asked.

"He passed out basically right after eating," I answered. "He's not Avery pleasant drunk anyway, it's best he just sleeps it off."

"I gotta be honest here, your family scares the shit outta me." T-Dog said.

"Even me?" I asked.

"Especially you!" He exclaimed, "Any kid that can open up a can of whoop ass like you can, is one that I'm gonna stay on the good side of." I laughed whole heartedly, even letting it slide that he'd called me a kid.

"It's just the way I was raised," I replied, "my uncles always wanted to make sure I'd be able to defend and take care of myself." I sunk the last striped ball with pride.

"What about," Glenn awkwardly began, "what about your parents?"

I sighed but I was feeling friendly, the drinks from earlier making me unusually open to conversation. Even on the topic of my parents, something I rarely spoke about with anyone. "I never knew my father," I admitted. "And my mom over dosed on me when I was twelve. I've been living with my uncles since then." An uncomfortable silence fell over the room until Glenn spoke up.

"Well, we're all orphans now," Glenn said quietly. "That's one good thing about the end of the world, it's put everyone on the same page."

"Pretty words coming from the drunkest guy in the room," I said, smiling. "Now how about we finish this slaughter? Top left corner, I call it." I leaned on the table and shot the eight ball straight into the pocket I'd said it would go into.

"Unbelievable," T-Dog replied, shaking his head.

"Well it was fun," I sighed, "but I think I'm gonna call it a night." I placed my pool cue back in its spot and grabbed my beer off the table. "Have a good night guys."

"Night Jo," Glenn said, giving me a little wave.

"Good night," T-Dog said.

I gave them both a little smile and left the room. I walked lazily down the hall, sipping my beer as my eyelids blinked heavily. I made my way to my room and quietly pushed open the door. Daryl was inside, snoring loudly. I fell into the bed on the other side of the room and put my drink on the little bed side table. I hadn't realized how much I missed sleeping on an actual mattress until no. I pulled the blankets up to my chin and closed my eyes, feeling completely relaxed and safe for the first time in a long time.


	13. Chapter 13

_The sound of crunching metal and smashing glass was all I could hear. The impact had been so sudden that I'd been too shocked to even scream. I held my breath, pressing my hands against the roof and door, trying to keep myself steady as the car flipped. My head rattled and the world seemed to be moving in slow motion. The trees around me were a blur of green. The car finally came to a halt and I released the breath I'd been holding._

 _I turned to my left and saw Merle, his eyes closed and blood coming from his nose. It wasn't until I saw the blood trailing from his nose, up his face that I realized we were upside down. We were both hanging upside down, secured in our seats by our belts. I suddenly felt moisture in my hair and I put my hand on a large gash on my head, wet with fresh blood. I didn't even remember striking my head on anything during the crash._

 _"Merle," I whimpered, my voice coming out like that of a terrified child. I reached out and shook him with a shaking hand. "Merle please wake up," I begged. His eyes fluttered open and he let out a pained groan. I sniffed and blinked away tears and let out a sigh of relief at him waking up._

 _"Jo," he muttered, "goddamn it."_

 _"Hey Dixon!" An angry voice sounded from outside. "You thought you could just run away from our deal boy?" I awkwardly shifted in my seat trying to get a look at who was speaking. In the mirror I saw three men coming over to our flipped car. My heart pounded at the sight of metal baseball bats in the arms of two of the men._

 _"Merle, who are they? What do they want?" I asked in a panic._

 _"Don't worry," he told me, reaching across me and fumbling with the glove compartment, "I've got this girl. Don't worry none." He pulled at the handle but the compartment had been jammed shut in the accident._

 _"Hey Merle, long time no see," the same voice said, this time he was beside the car. A bearded heavy set man, yanked open Merle's door and began to grab at him. He was quickly joined by his friend and they began to pull him out of the car and drag him on to the open road. One man began striking my uncle over and over agin with his bat, striking him in the torso mercilessly._

 _"Stop!" I screamed, horrified at what I was seeing. I turned to my door, grabbed the handle and my breath caught in my throat as I came face to face with the third man. He squatted beside the smashed window, smirking at me with his bat resting in his hands._

 _"Don't worry darling," he croaked, "you'll have your turn." He blew a little kiss and sauntered around the car to join in beating my uncle. I quickly scrambled to get out of the car, first unbuckling my seatbelt and groaning as my body crashed into the roof. I moved to open the door but then my eyes fell on the glove compartment. I wrestled with the handle with both hands until the door finally popped open. My eyes went wide at the sight of a hand gun resting neatly on a dirty rag. I picked it up and with one swift kick, knocked open the passenger side door of the car. I stumbled out of the car, leaning on the wrecked vehicle for support._

 _I pointed the gun with shaking hands, my resolve wavering. I lowered the gun, unsure if I could do what I needed to. None of the men had seen me yet. I could still run, try to get help somehow. Suddenly, one of the men pulled a gun from his belt and pointed it at Merle's head. In an instant, I raised my weapon again and pulled the trigger._

My eyelids sprung open and I drew a ragged breath. My throat was dry and my eyes sore. I took deep breaths, trying to slow my heart rate. I could feel my heart pounding against my chest, my vivid dream setting me on edge. This had become a common occurrence, waking up in a panic after dreaming about a distant painful memory. Every night, when I closed my eyes, I willed myself not to dream. So far, nothing had changed.

I got out of bed, rubbing my face in exhaustion. I turned to Daryl's bed and saw him there, under the covers, still in a deep sleep. I walked across the room and nudged him. He muttered something unintelligible in response.

"Daryl," I said, "wanna get breakfast?" He grunted and rolled over, giving me his back. I rolled my eyes and turned around. "Fine, but I'm not leaving anything for you." I said as I left the room. I didn't bother with changing my clothes or brushing my hair. I just grabbed a soft cotton blanket off my bed, threw it over my shoulders, and walked down the long hallway, following the smell of bacon.


	14. Chapter 14

The cafeteria smelled of delicious breakfast foods I never thought I would smell again after the world fell apart. T-Dog and Jacqui were preparing eggs and bacon jovially in the kitchen while Dale, Glenn, Andrea, Lori, and Carl ate their breakfast in quiet conversation. My mouth was practically dripping as I approached the table, my blanket still slung around my shoulders.

 **A/N: Hey everybody! Sorry it's been so long! I've been busy lately but hopefully I'll be back to an update every weekend from now on. Enjoy!**

"Mornin' Jo," Dale greeted as I got close. Everyone else let out a chorus of good mornings and hellos as I pulled out a chair and sat down in between Glenn and Lori.

"Good morning," I said quietly in response. The warm greeting was a bit of a departure from the usual way this group talked to me. Maybe it was because neither of my uncles were around or because everyone was in a good mood due to feeling safe here, but I felt like a real part of the group. I thought about last night, playing pool and laughing with Glenn and T-Dog and the day in the woods patrolling with Dale. I hadn't realized it, but this group was slowly, but surely, starting to grow on me in an unexpected way. Looking around the table, this was not at all the group of people I would have picked to survive an apocalypse with, but they were proving themselves every day.

"Orange Juice?" Lori asked me, holding up a pitcher of the sweet drink. I nodded and held out an empty glass. She poured juice for me and I smiled and gave her a small nod as I began to drink it. I grabbed some bacon from a big dish in the middle of the table and chewed on it silently, looking around at the odd family I was now a part of.

"You're awful quiet," Dale observed, giving me a sideways glance.

"Are you hungover too?" Glenn asked. I looked at him and my eyes widened at how crappy he looked. I hadn't noticed upon first entering but he looked like death.

"No, but something tells me you are," I replied laughing. He just closed his eyes and rubbed his face in response. "Makes sense," I continued, "your face did get pretty red yesterday." Everyone laughed as they ate.

"Here girl," T-Dog said as he came next to me with a pan in his hand, "I worked some magic on these eggs." He poured some scrambled eggs on to my plate with a wooden spoon.

"Thanks," I said with a smile. I shoveled the eggs into my mouth greedily.

"Consider that my payment for losing three pool games in a row last night." T-Dog told me as he went back behind the counter.

"Three times?" Carl repeated in disbelief.

"Yeah, I'm a bit of a shark," I told the kid with a wink. "It also helps that T-Dog here ain't exactly a pro."

"Can you teach me how to play?" Carl suddenly asked. I looked at him with surprise. I hadn't really spoken to him much in the past but now he was beaming at me with excitement. I looked at his mom and she shrugged with a soft smile.

"I don't see why not," I answered, "I'll show you today if I can." Carl nodded happily then looked up at his mom with that goofy grin. She ruffled his hair and gave him a little side hug.

"Morning," Rick said from behind me. I turned around and watched as he walked groggily to the table. Before he could even sit down, Carl spoke.

"Are you hungover?" He asked his dad with a cheeky smile. "Mom said you'd be."

"Mom is right," Rick admitted as he took a seat between his wife and me.

"Mom has that annoying habit," Lori responded with a chuckle.

"Eggs," T-Dog declared as he poured some on to Rick's plate, "powdered, but I do 'em good. I bet you can't tell." Glenn suddenly moaned loudly and T-Dog shook his head at him. "Protein helps the hangover," he told his friend as he served him eggs.

"Where'd all this come from?" Rick suddenly asked. I paused for a moment, holding a spoonful of eggs. I looked at the food and realized that I hadn't even thought of where the food came from. I'd been so eager to eat that I didn't have time to debate its origin.

"Jenner," Lori answered, "he thought we could use it. Some of us at least." She looked up at Glenn with a coy little smile.

"Don't ever ever ever let me drink again," Glenn grumbled. Jacqui rubbed his shoulders supportively.

"Don't talk like that," I teased him "you were having a grand ol' time yesterday."

"It's not worth it, not worth it," he mumbled in response.

"Not for lightweights," I laughed.

"Hey," Shane said suddenly as he walked into the room. A few people said "hey" back, I simply waved my hand casually in the air, not even looking up. Shane still kind of gave me chills honestly. He had dangerous vibes.

"Feel as bad as I do?" Rick asked his friend.

"Worse," Shane replied, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"The hell happened to you?" T-Dog asked him, looking concerned "Your neck?"

"Must have done it in my sleep," Shane told him dismissively.

"Never seen you do that before," Rick responded.

"Me neither," Shane grumbled "not like me at all." I looked at him and furrowed my brows at the sight of three gashes on his neck. They still looked pretty raw and new, and definitely not like something he had done in his sleep. He suddenly looked up, glaring at me. I didn't look away, taking his dark look as a challenge that I wouldn't back away from. He continued to stare, looking ready to pounce.

"Morning," Dr. Jenner announced as he came into the room.

"Hey, Doc," Shane greeted, looking back into his coffee cup. I turned away from him and made eye contact with Dale, who was looking at me with cautious eyes. I assumed he had seen me and Shane's little stare down.

"Doctor, I don't mean to slam you with questions first thing in the morning," Dale said.

"But you will anyway," the doctor sighed as he poured himself some coffee. Daryl strolled in behind him at gave me a little squeeze on my shoulder as he made his way to the food and began to help himself to a heaping serving of eggs.

"We didn't come here for the eggs," Andrea stated coldly. Jenner turned with a tired look and faced the group. Everyone looked at him expectedly, waiting to hear his response.

"Well," he said "follow me then." With that, he turned and left the room, coffee in hand. Everyone eagerly stood and followed him, abandoning their breakfast. I watched the group as they left and sighed. Daryl shrugged and followed everyone, inhaling his food before he left. I stood up, grabbing the remaining bacon off the table and hurried after everyone, mildly annoyed at having my breakfast disturbed


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: It's been a long time since I updated this story so I apologize for that. I was working on some other stories and wasn't sure if I wanted to continue this one. I'll try and post another update soon. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

"It don't make no difference to me," Daryl said, drinking whiskey straight from the bottle. I sat cross legged on my bed watching him pace the room. I'd poured myself a glass but found as I held it that I wasn't in the mood to drink. I didn't say anything as Daryl drunkenly ranted. "Who the hell cares about the rest of the world anyways? I ain't never been there. I ain't never met any people there. They don't matter to me."

"Yeah," I mumbled, putting my glass down on the side table. "I just didn't think this was really it."

"What?" Daryl turned to face me.

"I kinda thought there had to be something else. Like there was no way this is how our lives would be forever," I said quietly.

"Well this is it Jo," Daryl said, plopping down on his bed, "get used to it."

His words were harsh but I knew he was right. When those doors had opened for us outside the CDC, I'd actually felt hopeful. Being here had given me optimism I hadn't felt in a long time. Drinking and laughing with the people here had made me almost forget how shitty things were outside these walls. Jenner telling us that the whole world was doing as badly as we were, brought me back to reality real fast.

Suddenly the lights in the room shut off above us. I looked up in surprise then looked at Daryl.

"What the hell?" He muttered in an aggravated tone. He got up, whiskey in hand and went out into the hallway to investigate. From my bed I could hear the others outside, also confused.

"What's going on?" Daryl asked Jenner as the doctor walked down the hall.

"Energy use is being prioritized," Jenner answered, grabbing Daryl's drink as he went by. Daryl stepped out of the room to follow him. I sighed and followed after my uncle. In the hallway, everyone looked alarmed and worried. They were all looking at the doctor for answers.

"Lights aren't a priority?" Dale asked him.

"It's not up to me," Jenner told him, shaking his head "zone 5 is shutting itself down."

"I thought you were in charge around here?" I called up to Jenner. He either didn't hear me or he was ignoring me cause he just kept on walking. I was betting on the latter.

"Hey! Hey, what the hell does that mean?" Daryl demanded, following close behind Jenner. Annoyingly, the doctor just kept moving, completely ignoring my uncle. "Hey man, I'm talking to you! What do you mean it's shutting itself down?"

I felt a bit nervous as the rest of the group and I followed Jenner. I was in the back of the crowd so I watched as everyone hustled nervously. The two mothers of the group held their kids tight to them. The strange doctor obviously didn't want to tell us what was going on. The lights all around us were shutting off and the place was buzzing as all the power went out.

As we entered the main computer room I saw Rick, Shane, Glenn, and T-Dog enter from another door. The four of them had split to check the fuel situation for the center and judging from their expressions, the situation wasn't good. I made my way to my uncle and stood by his side. It was a force of habit to get close to him when things got tense.

"Rick!" Lori called out to her husband when she saw him.

"Jenner, what's happening?" Rick demanded.

"The system is dropping all the nonessential uses of power," he explained.

"So now he talks," I grumbled to Daryl.

"It's designed to keep the computers running to the last possible second," he continued. "That started as we approach the half-hour mark. Right on schedule," he pointed at the big red countdown clock on the wall. Everyone just stared at him in confusion and worry. He was explaining the situation but still nobody knew what any of this meant.

"Dude could you stop being so damn vague and just tell us what this means?" I asked in frustration.

"It was the French," Jenner said, looking at Andrea.

"What?" She replied in confusion. I threw my hands up and hissed under my breath at my questions once again being ignored.

"They were the last ones to hold out as far as I know," he told her. "While our people were bolting out the doors and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs until the end. They thought they were close to a solution."

"What happened?" Jacqui asked.

"The same thing that's happening here," Jenner answered.

"And what's happening here?" I shouted. I was sick of all this cryptic nonsense. I felt like slapping this guy. Why couldn't he just give us a straight answer? I was surprised when his eyes landed on me.

"No power grid, ran out of juice," he said. "The world runs off fossil fuel. I mean, how stupid is that?" He turned away from us and started walking away, up a small set of stairs. I looked at Daryl with my mouth agape. Daryl looked about ready to rip the doctor's head off. I felt like I'd walked into an episode of the twilight zone. Nothing anyone was saying around here made any goddamn sense!

"Let me tell you," Shane spat, climbing the stairs after him. Apparently my uncle wasn't the only one about to lose it.

"Shane don't!" Rick said warningly to his friend. "Lori, grab our things. Everybody get your stuff. We're getting out of here now!"

Everyone began moving quickly to the exit. Daryl put his hand on my back and began hurrying us along. I wasn't exactly a fan of Rick Grimes and I didn't like him telling us what to do, but I wasn't going to argue with him on this one. This doctor was obviously bad news and whatever was going wrong with this place, I didn't want to be a part of it. An alarm started blaring and red lights started swirling around the room. Everyone stopped moving and looked around with panicked expressions.

"What's that?" A couple people asked in shaking voices.

"Thirty minutes to decontamination," the computer voice, Vi, suddenly announced to the room. The computer screen had a big countdown starting at thirty. Daryl and I exchanged concerned looks. I could tell he was thinking the same thing I was, stick together and get the hell out of here.

"Let's go," Daryl said, pushing me towards the door. Everyone else was still frozen in shock.

"Everybody, y'all heard Rick! Get your stuff and let's go! Go now! Go!" Shane shouted at the group. Everyone started moving again, running to the exit, following behind Daryl and me. Suddenly, the door started closing in front of us.

"No!" I cried, trying to sprint to it before it shut. Daryl did the same but we both came short, the metal banging shut just as our hands slammed into it.

"Shit," Daryl cursed, kicking the door angrily.

I looked around the room in a panic, all the other exits were sealed too. I put my hands on my head, my heart pounding in fear. We were all trapped. All the others in the group seemed just as scared. Carol was crying as she held her daughter tight to her body. The countdown clock was staring me in the face as the seconds raced. What the hell was gonna happen when it hit zero?


	16. Chapter 16

**_A/N: We are officially out of season one! I'm looking forward to the Greene family joining the story. I hope you all enjoy this chapter!_**

 _I rifled through the letters in the mailbox. They were all bills, most read overdue in bright red letters. I sighed when I came across the electric bill. We'd fallen way behind, again. It was only a matter of time before they shut off our power again. I sat on the front step and wondered if I should try and get more hours at work. I was too young to work nights but maybe I could do weekends too. I jumped and dropped all the papers when I heard a shrill scream followed by a loud crash inside the house._

 _"_ _Mom?" I called in a panic, throwing open the front door. I dashed into the house to see my mom's current boyfriend, Rob, with his hands tight around her throat. She had blood in the corner of her mouth and her eyes were wide as she suffocated. "Get the fuck off her!" I screamed. Without even thinking, I grabbed the lamp close to me and brought it crashing down on his head. Much to my surprise, he didn't collapse from the strike. All he did was release my mom and turn slowly to me. I backed away from his massive frame as he lumbered towards me, his face red with fury._

 _"_ _Jo," my mom groaned through ragged coughs, "Jo, stay out of it."_

 _"_ _You little bitch," Rob muttered. He swung his right fist at me, punching me square in the face. I flew backwards, landing on my back. I tasted blood and brought a shaking hand to my face. I felt the blood that was cascading from my nose. I groaned and rolled over, propping myself up on my elbows. I heard Rob moving closer to me and I began to wriggle away from him._

 _I couldn't help the loud cry of pain that escaped me when I felt his belt lash across my back. I fell flat on to my stomach, my back burning. I continued to scream as he whipped me again and again, harder and harder. I could hear my mom crying, begging him to stop but not taking an action to actually stop him. All I could do was keep on crawling like a dying animal._

 _"_ _You son of a bitch!" I looked up and saw Daryl in the doorway, a rage in his eyes like I'd never seen before. He flew across the room, tackling Rob. I pulled myself to my feet, leaning on the wall in exhaustion and pain. I watched the scene unfold in front of me in silence. Rob was significantly bigger than my uncle but he was no match for him. Daryl was in a frenzy, whatever hits Rob managed to land on him, Daryl showed no reaction to. He just kept on punching my mom's boyfriend in the face, spitting all types of curses at him while doing so. It was so satisfying to watch his face become a bloody swollen mess. My mom stayed on the floor, crying. Now she was begging Daryl to stop._

 _Finally, Rob collapsed. Blood poured from his mouth and nose and his breathing was shallow. He looked like he'd been hit by a truck and the sight was beautiful to me._

 _"_ _You ain't never gonna put your hands on her again," Daryl hissed. He pulled a pocket knife from his pocket, flipped it open and pressed it to Rob's neck, "Never again!"_

 _"_ _No!" my mom cried._

 _"_ _Daryl don't," I said quietly, making my way over to my uncle, "he's not worth it."_

 _"_ _It's your lucky day asshole," Daryl told him, putting away his pocket knife, "if I ever see your fat face around here again, you're gonna wish I'd killed ya." I leaned over Rob's body and spit right in his face. I hoped he was conscious enough to know I'd done that. I wanted him to remember._

 _"_ _Let's go," I mumbled to my uncle. He lifted me into his arms with ease and began making his way to the door._

 _"_ _Jo, don't leave me," my mom whimpered as we left. Daryl and I didn't look back at her. He put me in the passenger seat of Merle's truck and went around to the driver's side._

 _"_ _Would you really have killed him?" I asked as he drove._

 _"_ _I'd kill anyone before I let them hurt you," Daryl told me. "You're my girl, Jo."_

 _I smiled and gave his shoulder a squeeze. He gave me a gentle smile in return but his eyes were still in that frenzied state. Even though I was okay and he'd beaten Rob to a bloody pulp, Daryl's blood was still boiling. He looked like a man on the edge, ready to take a life._

Daryl had that same familiar expression on his face now. He swung an ax repeatedly at the thick metal door. Each impact left barely a scratch but that wasn't going to stop my uncle. The others in the group were still trying to reason with Doctor Jenner, begging him to let us out before the building exploded. Daryl was never one to try and negotiate though. He knew he wouldn't be able to cut through the door but he would keep at it until the countdown hit zero.

I just sat against the railing, watching him go at the door and tried to listen to what was being said by the others. I didn't feeling like spending possibly my last few minutes on earth exhausting myself swinging an ax; and there was no way in hell I was gonna go and beg that asshole doctor for my life. He would probably just ignore me anyway. Just as I was about to tell my uncle to give it up, the door lifted open in front of him. He stopped mid-swing in shock and turned to everyone.

"Come on!" he shouted. He ran to me and lifted me up to my feet. We began to move to the open door and everyone scrambled to follow.

"Hey, we've got four minutes left! Come on!" Glenn screamed at Rick who was lingering by the doctor.

"Let's go, let's go," T-Dog said, trying to hustle Jacqui along to the exit.

"No, no," she protested, "I'm staying. I'm staying, sweetie." I turned around in shock at her words. I had barely spoken to the woman in my time with the group but what she was saying was still surprising.

"But that's insane!" T-Dog hissed.

"No, it's completely sane," she replied calmly, "for the first time in a long time. I'm not ending up like Jim and Amy. There's no time to argue, and no point, not if you want to get out. Just get out. Get out." She pushed T-Dog towards the door but he looked too stunned to move, he couldn't leave her.

"T-Dog we gotta go now!" I called to him. His back was to me and he couldn't take his eyes off Jacqui.

"Dog, come on man," Shane said, grabbing him by the arm and pulling him away. Everyone still stood hesitantly in the doorway, waiting for Dale and Andrea to follow.

"I'm staying too," Andrea declared solemnly.

"Andrea, no," Dale cried, his voice laced with desperation. Andrea slid down to the ground and Dale stood there in awe. "Just go! Go!" He called to everyone, waving them away. The group listened and began to run down the hallway. My uncle grabbed a hold of my arm and began to pull me along with them, but I tore myself from his grip.

"Dale come with us!" I called out to him.

"Jo, what the hell are you doing? Let's go!" Daryl grabbed me by the shoulders this time and turned me around, pushing me on ahead of him.

"I can't just leave her!" Dale shouted back at me as my uncle and I followed after the rest of the group.

"Don't die for someone who doesn't want to live Dale!" I yelled down the hall. He didn't respond but I prayed he'd heard me.

"Let's go," Daryl commanded. I gave him a nod and we took off running, catching up to the others. We all ran upstairs and grabbed only the bare necessities from our rooms before charging to the front doors. The men all pushed and pulled at the locked doors to no avail. T-Dog tried messing with a security panel on the wall but that proved helpless as well. Daryl and Shane each swung their axes at the glass paneling but it was just like the metal door all over again. I loaded up my rifle and fired into the window. The shot left barely a crack. I fired three more times at the same spot, waiting for the glass to shatter. I couldn't believe how impenetrable this stuff was.

"You gotta be shitting me with this," I said, shaking my head in disbelief. Shane decided to try the same thing with his shotgun but yielded the same results as me.

"Rick, I have something that might help," Carol declared suddenly, digging around in her bag.

"Carol, I don't think a nail file's gonna do it," Shane told her dismissively. I scolded at him. Even when death was possibly minutes away, the dude found time to be a dick.

"Your first morning at camp," Carol continued to explain to Rick, "When I washed your uniform, I found this in the pocket." She held out a grenade with a shaking hand.

"Holy shit," I muttered to myself. We might actually get out of this. Everyone got down as Rick went to the wall to set the grenade off. Daryl put his arms over my head to protect me. Rick ran away as the explosion went off, sending him into the air a bit and shattering the glass.

Lori helped her husband up and we all dashed outside. We made quick work of the walkers that had gathered around the CDC. I shot two in the head and the men took care after the rest as everyone hustled into the vehicles. I got into the passenger seat of our truck and Daryl ran around to the driver's side.

"Looks like your buddy made it," Daryl said as he started up the truck. I looked up and let out a breath of relief at Dale making his way out of the building with Andrea behind him. The feeling was bittersweet when I realized that Jacqui wasn't with them. Rick began honking the horn at the two as they ran. He and his wife screamed for Dale to get down.

"Down, down," Daryl said. We both ducked in our seats. I squeezed my eyes shut and just listened to the loud boom of the building exploding. I felt the heat from the fire even through the car. When it was quiet, I sprung up, scanning the outside for Dale. He and Andrea both had reached cover in time and they appeared unscathed. Dale guided Andrea to the R.V. and he ushered her inside. He looked back at our truck and gave me a thumbs up. I couldn't help but chuckle as I gave him one back. Then he hustled into the vehicle closing the door behind him.

"Fucking scientists," Daryl grumbled, looking at the flaming rumble the building had been reduced to.

"Yeah," I nodded, "fucking scientists."

Daryl squeezed my shoulder as he pulled out into the road, following the cars in front of us. Well, we were back on the road. This little side trip to the CDC had almost killed us all and now we'd lost another person. Plus, we didn't learn anything about this disease that could actually help us at all. I closed my eyes and leaned back in my seat, finally feeling like I could breathe again. At least there had been booze there.


	17. Chapter 17

Merle's truck had finally died on us. It had always been a piece of shit, but it was Merle's piece of shit and I didn't want to give it up. Daryl had tried his best to get it running again but it seemed she was gone for good. It was with a heavy heart that we left the truck behind. To conserve gas, the group also let go of Shane's car as it was a big gas guzzler. With Daryl and me riding his chopper, we were down to three vehicles total. Fort Benning was the new destination and I was cautiously optimistic about this one. I had thought the CDC would work out well and that had literally blown up in our faces. I wasn't about to put all my hope into another unseen location.

I had my arms wrapped around my uncle's torso as he rode, leading the trio of vehicles. I missed being able to recline in the truck. But, I was still able to sleep on the chopper. It was something I always did, even as a little girl. I would lean forward into my uncle's back and fall asleep, my face in his leather vest.

"Goddamn it," Daryl muttered as we approached a massive roadblock. Tons of abandoned vehicles cluttered the highway.

"Any way through?" I sighed.

"Maybe," Daryl mumbled in response. He craned his neck, trying to spot a possible pathway. He turned the bike around and pulled up beside the R.V.

"See a way through?" Dale asked from the driver's seat. Daryl made a follow me motion with his head and went back on ahead, slowly making his way through the empty cars. I groaned at the sound of the R.V. making a familiar sputtering sound behind us.

"Not this again," I grumbled, turning around to see smoke billowing out from the front of the vehicle. Everyone got out of the R.V. and went around the front to inspect the issue. Rick and his family emerged from the car behind them with Carol and Sophia. Daryl turned the chopper off and shrugged at me before getting off. My uncle began busying himself immediately, picking through the empty cars for supplies. I just stood and stretched with a deep yawn. It felt good to move my legs after riding for so long.

"If you can't find a radiator hose here," Daryl said to the others, "There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find."

"I can siphon more fuel from these cars for a start," T-Dog offered, stepping forward.

"Maybe some water?" Carol asked meekly.

"Or food?" Glenn added.

"Maybe even weapons," I said. Maybe this disaster was a blessing in disguise.

"This is a graveyard," Lori said suddenly. Everyone looked around, obviously uncomfortable now. "I don't know how I feel about this."

"They ain't using any of it anymore," I grabbed a little Spiderman action figure from the backseat of the car Daryl had been searching. I tossed the toy to Carl who caught it with a big smile. "I'm sure they won't mind." Lori glared at me but I ignored her, only shrugging in response. I had no desire to start an argument with her, especially in front of her kid.

"All right then, let's go," T-Dog declared, clapping his hands, "Come on y'all, just look around." Everyone started getting busy, digging through cars and inspecting everything. Everyone that is, except Andrea. She just stood there with her arms crossed, staring at her surroundings like a deer in headlights. She suddenly turned to me and I just walked away from her. I had been sick of her for a long time already. The crap she pulled at the CDC was just the cherry on top. I started digging through the trunk of a car, trying to get my mind off that pathetic woman.

"Hey," she said roughly from behind me.

I sighed and continued looking through the bags, not turning to face her. "What?"

"I see the way you look at me," she told me angrily, "like I'm some idiotic child."

"And you're here to prove that you aren't?" I asked her.

"I don't need to prove anything to you," she spat.

"Then what do you want?" I asked with an exasperated sigh.

"I want you to stop glaring at me all the time, look, I'm sorry about that night back at camp, when we were surrounded. I could hear you asking me to help you, but Amy," she stopped, choking up suddenly. I finally turned around to face Andrea.

"That apology was shitty and way late for almost getting someone killed," I told her, "and I look at you like that because you scare me."

"I what?" she asked, looking baffled.

"You scare me," I repeated, "cause you're cracking, I see it in you. Dale might have stopped you from killing yourself, but you died when Amy did, didn't you?" She stared back at me, looking crushed. "I'm scared of what's gonna happen when you decide to shut down again, who you might bring down with you."

"You are a real little bitch you know that?" She replied, her face a combination of hurt and anger.

"Yeah I know," I answered, "and you know I'm right about you."

"You don't know me."

"And I don't care to get to know you," I turned my back to her again and continued going through the trunk. "Are you done?"

"Fuck you," she said before storming off. I watched her over my shoulder stomp into the R.V. slamming the door behind her. I couldn't help but chuckle at the little outburst so soon after her telling me not to treat her like a child. That woman was just a waste of space as far as I was concerned. I wondered why she didn't just finish what she wanted to do back at the CDC and off herself. Maybe she'd lost her nerve to get the job done.

"Johanna!" I turned to see Rick calling to me in a hushed voice. He looked pretty anxious. "Get under the car!" I scrunched my face in confusion at his command when I suddenly saw why. Behind him, a massive group of walkers was making their way towards us. It was the largest group I'd ever seen.

"Christ," I hissed. I spun around, desperately looking for Daryl. I couldn't see him anywhere and the herd was too close for me to shout his name, it'd bring them all to me.

"Johanna," a voice whispered harshly. I looked down and saw Lori under a car near to me. "Take cover now!"

"I gotta warn Daryl," I whispered back, ducking down and weaving quickly through the cars in the direction I saw my uncle go. I heard Lori call to me one more time before I was too far for her to do so while also being quiet. She probably thought I was crazy but there was no way I could take cover without knowing where Daryl was. My first priority would always be sticking with family, no matter what.


	18. Chapter 18

I followed a trail of fresh crimson blood. I ran two fingers across it and rubbed it between them before sniffing it. Definitely human. The sheer amount was enough to get my heart pounding. Whoever this blood belonged to was probably a goner. I prayed it didn't belong to my uncle but if anyone could survive whatever caused all this blood to spill, it would be him. I just had to find him as soon as possible. I ducked behind a car quietly as a few walkers shuffled by, cursing internally.

"Jo," I heard someone call to me quietly. I looked down and saw Glenn lying down beside Shane under a truck. Glenn stared at me, wide eyed and beads of sweat dripping down his face. He beckoned frantically for me to get under the truck with them. I looked over my shoulder and saw an open path; I could keep on going ahead, looking for Daryl.

"Down," Shane hissed at me, "now," he pointing down at me with a furious expression. I looked around and noticed walkers beginning to fill the entire area.

"Shit," I whispered to myself. I got down on my stomach and slid underneath the car next to me. Now hidden, all I could do was watch in silence as walkers moved past me. Jesus Christ, this herd was massive. I looked back at Glenn who gave me a reassuring nod and awkward smile. I returned a small smile, impressed that the guy was trying to comfort me despite how obviously scared he was. After a while of no longer hearing or seeing any walkers, it seemed like the coast was clear. I rolled out from under the car and looked over the cars at the disappearing herd.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Shane spat at me as he crawled out from under the truck with Glenn.

"Did you see Daryl anywhere?" I asked the men, ignoring Shane's previous question.

"Last I saw, he was siphoning fuel with T-Dog," Glenn answered, wiping sweat from his face.

"Did you hear me?" Shane asked, "You could have gotten yourself killed, wandering around like that."

"Yeah, I heard you," I told him. I climbed up on the hood of the car and looked over the abandoned cars; all the walkers seemed to be gone. I climbed down and turned back to the men, "I'm gonna go find them." Shane looked like he wanted to argue more but there was a woman's shrieking in the distance.

"Come on man," Shane said, grabbing Glenn by the shoulder. The two ran off in the same direction as the scream. I continued following the trail of blood until I finally came upon Daryl and T-Dog. The sight was bittersweet. My uncle was fine but T-Dog seemed to have one foot in the grave.

"Holy shit," I muttered. T-Dog was passed out and soaked in blood and my uncle was hunched over him, examining his wounds. "Was he bit?"

"Nah," Daryl answered, "looks like he cut himself on something."

"He's lost a ton of blood," I said. I began riffling through nearby cars, looking for something that could help.

"Yeah I know, but he's still breathing," Daryl grumbled back. There was another loud cry from afar. "What the hell, was that Carol?"

"You wanna check on it?" I asked. I pulled a first aid kit from the glove compartment of a car. "I can take care of him."

"Be careful," Daryl said. I nodded to him as he grabbed his knife off the ground and made his way to the rest of the group. I knelt down beside T-Dog and began cleaning the massive gash on his arm with hydrogen peroxide. The disinfectant fizzed up on the bloody wound. Daryl had already tied a rag around T-Dog's upper arm to try and stop the bleeding but it didn't seem to be doing much. I tightened it as much as I could but the wound continued to gush.

"Am I dead?" T-Dog moaned deliriously, his eyes fluttering open.

"Not yet," I replied, beginning to wrap his arm in gauze.

"Jo?" he asked, his gaze focusing on me. His eyes rolled back and he let out a deranged laugh. "Dixons just keep on saving my life today."

"Patching you up is just payment for slaughtering you in pool back at the CDC," I told him, smiling smugly.

"Even when I'm dying, I'll never live that down," T-Dog mumbled back.

"You're not dying," I assured him.

"Feels like it," he replied. With that, his head lolled to the side and he slipped out of consciousness.

"Goddamn it," I said to myself as blood soaked through the gauze I'd just wrapped on him. His face was starting to look pale from blood loss. I prayed the man wasn't actually dying but he sure as hell looked like he was.


	19. Chapter 19

The group had managed to scrap together a good amount of supplies while Daryl and Rick searched the woods for Sophia. Everyone who had died on this road had obviously packed for the long haul. There were tons of bags full of clothes and personal items. Most importantly, there was plenty of canned and boxed food to go around. I pulled open a leather purse and dug through it, it was mostly full of crap, a wallet, family photos, old receipts.

My eyes suddenly fell on a little black box inside. I carefully popped it open and was pleasantly surprised to see a diamond necklace inside. It wasn't too gaudy, just a simple silver chain with a few diamonds on the end. I looked around, strangely embarrassed at the thought of someone seeing me waste time ogling jewelry. But I'd never owned anything so fancy. The only jewelry I'd ever seen my mom wear was fake gold chains with big ugly faux rhinestones. When I was sure no one was around, I opened the latch and pulled the chain around my neck. I chewed on my lip anxiously as I struggled to close the clasp.

"Hey Jo," Carl said, suddenly appearing behind me. I dropped the necklace on the ground, feeling ridiculous at being caught. The kid didn't seem to notice but that silly feeling was still fluttering in my stomach.

"What's up kid?" I asked, composing myself. I turned around and couldn't help but chuckle at the excited grin Carl wore. "What? Did you find something good?"

"Yeah!" He answered happily. He knelt down and unraveled a leather pouch full of assorted knives. "Pretty cool huh?" he asked, beaming with pride.

"Oh hell yeah," I told him, pulling a small ax out and examining it. "This is a sweet find, way to go junior."

"Thanks, Shane told me to bring them to Dale, that's where I was going now," he said, rolling the weapons back up. "My mom won't let me keep one."

"Maybe she would if you learned how to use one properly," I offered. I thought it was stupid that Lori wouldn't let the kid carry a knife at least. Just cause he was young didn't mean he shouldn't be able to defend himself. Maybe if Sophia had had a knife, she wouldn't have run away and gotten herself lost in the woods. Merle had taught me to shoot when I was much younger than both kids.

"Could you show me?" He asked.

"Sure," I answered with a shrug, "you and Sophia should both know how to fight. I can teach you guys a few things, long as I get the blessings from your mamas."

"You think I could be as tough as you?" He asked. I smirked, feeling flattered at his question. I was a god bit older than Carl and Sophia but we were still the youngest ones in the group. But, I fought alongside all the adults while the kids hung onto their moms. I guess it made sense that Carl would look up to me although I'd never considered it before.

"I don't know, maybe," I leaned back against the car, "lemme see those guns." Carl stared at me quizzically. "Your muscles kid, let's see your muscles," I flexed my arms jokingly. Carl laughed as realization came over him. He bared his teeth in mock aggression as he flexed his little spindly arms. "Come on Hercules, show me what you got," I laughed as I held out my palms to him. He smiled excitedly as he wildly threw a hard right fist into my palm.

"Was that good?" He asked. The kid looked positively giddy and I had to admit, it was pretty cute.

"Not bad," I told him, bobbing my head casually. "Make sure you turn your arm when you extend it," I punched the air in slow motion, demonstrating for him; "your thumb should be facing down." Carl watched me intently and copied my motions.

"Like this?" He asked, looking expectedly at me.

"Yeah just like that," I told him with a smile. I remembered my uncle Merle teaching me to punch. His lesson of course also included how to break someone's nose. I figured it was best to leave that out of Carl's little class. Eventually I'd teach him how to fight properly, but for now a correct punch would do.

"Thanks!" He beamed, doing a punching motion repeatedly in the air.

"Just keep practicing at that," I told him, "you'll be the toughest guy in the group."

Carl continued his punches with a smile on his face. Suddenly, his expression suddenly turned serious. "Do you think Daryl and my dad will find Sophia?"

"I don't know about how good a tracker your daddy is," I told Carl honestly, "but my uncle could track a bird on a cloudy day. He'll find Sophia alright, don't worry kid."

"Are you a tracker too?" he asked. I sighed, dropping a bag full of useless junk on the ground. I moved onto another car and he followed closely behind.

"Not as good as Daryl," I told him as I rifled through the new vehicle, "but yeah, I'm pretty good."

"Could you track a person?"

"Sure kid."

"How 'bout a deer?"

"Yeah."

"A dog?"

"I can track any animal, alright?" I snapped. Carl only nodded with that same goofy smile, not looking even slightly deterred. This kid was nothing like I was at his age. He was so outgoing and talkative. When I was his age, kids at school thought I was weird cause I was so quiet. They went home to loving parents while I went home to me drugged up mom. I always felt like a different species from the kids around me, kids like Carl. Yet, this kid seemed eager to be around me and talk to me. It was unfamiliar territory, but I enjoyed discovering it. "Maybe I could teach you that too," I offered.

"Really?" He asked incredulously.

"Sure, maybe you could start helping out with hunting," I replied with a shrug. I opened up a small metal box inside the car and smiled at the sight of a variety of tools. I closed it up and handed it to Carl. "Here bring this to Dale with those weapons you found." He lifted it carefully into his little arms.

"Okay," he said, turning around and beginning to march away. He paused and turned back around to face me. "Thanks for teaching me how to punch Jo. You're the best." With that, he happily walked away towards the RV. I smiled as I watched him disappear around a few cars. Once he was out of sight I went back to the other car and looked around the floor carefully. I found the little silver chain underneath the vehicle and I grabbed it up quickly. I fastened it around my neck and looked down at the piece of jewelry; it felt foreign against my skin. This was the first time I'd worn something so elegant. But just like befriending Carl, the unfamiliar experience was a welcomed one.

I heard a slight commotion by the RV and I saw everyone gathering around. Daryl and Rick were back. I jogged over eagerly to see what was happening. Had they found Sophia? My question was quickly answered by the sight of my uncle's solemn expression and Carol's teary eyed one. Shit.

"We have to make this an organized effort," Rick said to the group, "Daryl knows the woods better than anybody. I've asked him to oversee this."

"Is that blood?" Carol asked, her voice trembling. Daryl looked down at his clothes but didn't seem to know how to answer.

"We took down a walker," Rick answered.

"A walker? Oh my God," Carol sobbed.

"There was no sign it was ever anywhere near Sophia," Rick tried to reassure her.

"How can you know that?" Andrea asked. I didn't like the woman but I had to admit, I was thinking the same thing.

"We cut the son of a bitch open, made sure," Daryl answered reluctantly.

"Oh god," Carol murmured, shaking her head. She sat on the railing, looking exhausted. Lori came and sat beside her, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders. "How could you just leave her out there to begin with?" Carol suddenly cried at Rick. "How could you just leave her?" I stared at the mother in shock. I'd never seen her so antagonistic before. She was always so mild and quiet, like a little mouse.

"Those two walkers were on us, I had to draw them off. It was her best chance." Rick desperately tried to defend his actions. I couldn't help but feel bad for him as he explained himself to the grieving mother. His guilt at losing track of Sophia was apparent all over his face.

"Sounds like he didn't have a choice, Carol," Lori tried to defend her husband. But Carol wasn't done laying the guilt on Rick.

"How was she supposed to find her way back on her own? She's just a child. She's just a child," she wept.

"It was my only option, the only choice I could make," Rick desperately explained.

"I'm sure nobody doubts that," Shane added.

"My little girl got left in the woods," Carol cried. Everyone looked around in uncomfortable silence. There was nothing to say. Sophia was missing and there was nothing any of us could do about it. The sun was going down and tracking was impossible. The reality was that leaving Sophia alone for the night was the only option. We could only pray she stayed safe until morning when we could start searching again. Rick nodded and walked away wordlessly. Everyone else followed suit, disbanding in silence. Andrea and Lori stayed with Carol, whispering words of encouragement to her.

"They didn't find her," Carl mumbled sadly as he walked up beside me.

"They will," I answered simply.

"Your friend is out there little man," Daryl said, striding up to us, crossbow slung over his shoulder. "I'm gonna find her." Carl looked between me and my uncle and gave us a silent, sad nod before walking off. I sighed as the kid shuffled away with his head hanging.

"Daryl, tell me honestly," I whispered, "you think we're gonna find her tomorrow?"

"We gotta," he told me, his voice sounding determined. I could tell from his hard expression how much this meant to him. I nodded, keeping all my doubts to myself.


End file.
